James Jordan continues to slam same-sex dance couples

Ex-Strictly professional James Jordan has continued to speak out against having a same-sex dance pairing on the show, saying it would be a “joke”.

The dancer – who was axed from the BBC One show in 2014 after eight seasons – was responding to judge Craig Revel-Horwood’s recent comments that the celebrity dance competition could feature a same-sex pairing “this year or next”. He previously said that the idea was “wrong”.

Speaking to Phillip Schofield and Amanda Holden on ITV’s This Morning today (June 22), the 37-year-old explained: “It would be a joke couple, people wouldn’t take it seriously. It would have to be a comedy value.

“I don’t think it would be two men dancing the sexy rumba, I don’t think it would work.”

When Schofield Phillip asked Jordan’s wife and fellow Stricly dancer Ola if she agreed with her husband, she simply said: “No.”

James continued: “Why do we have to change something just to tick another box?

“I think there’s a lot of people who would agree with me that they wouldn’t want to see two same-sex people dancing on the show.”

He said: “It’s easy for Craig [Revel Horwood] to say he wants to see a same-sex couple. But he’s not from my world, he’s from the theatre world, he’s not a ballroom or Latin dancer, I am. And so I have a right to say whether or not I agree with it.

“It doesn’t make me homophobic at all it’s just something I feel very strongly about.”

Jordan originally hit out at same-sex dace couples, unprompted, while appearing on Celebrity Big Brother last year, where he told fellow housemates:“I do not agree with men dancing with men.”

Strictly featured its first same-sex dance last year, when professional dancer Robin Windsor danced with reigning champion Aljaž Skorjanec – click here to watch the moment.

Last year, gay Radio 1 presenter Scott Mills defended the BBC’s decision to pair him with a woman during the competition, saying that same-sex pairings don’t “work as well in things like ballroom”.

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